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Learning outcomes – Business


Business Level 4 Modules


Business Level 5 Modules


Business Level 6 Modules


Business Level 4 Modules

Introduction to Online Learning and Personal Development (15 credits)

  • Demonstrate the technical and personal requirements of online learning
  • Demonstrate competencies in the use of the tools available to online learners
  • Possess the ability to reflect on activities and personal development in terms of both process and task
  • Identify effective operational techniques in a variety of learning contexts
  • Explain the organisational, environmental and societal contexts in which their careers and lives will unfold

Business Environment (15 credits)

  • Evaluate the broad approaches to organisation and management
  • Understand the economic environment of business
  • Examine the nature of economic activity in the business market
  • Identify and understand the main reasons why countries benefit from engaging in international trade with each other
  • Recognise the importance of the European single market for British business

Fundamentals of Marketing (15 credits)

  • Describe how the marketing environment affects a firm's market strategy
  • Identify influences on consumer behaviour
  • Understand the concepts of segmentation, targeting and positioning
  • Analyse the marketing mix
  • Describe the role of marketing within service firms

Business Finance (15 credits)

  • Explain the importance of finance as a resource within an organisation
  • Understand the process of company account preparation using accruals and prepayments
  • Apply appropriate techniques to analyse and evaluate financial performance
  • Make financial decisions based on financial information

Human Resource Management (15 credits)

  • Identify job requirements, develop job descriptions, and recommend job qualification
  • Outline and understand the recruitment and selection process by assessing various tools including testing, application blanks, interviews, references, and resumes
  • Understand major laws affecting personnel practices
  • Distinguish between various compensation programs and rate different incentive plans as motivations in particular situations
  • Formulate simple programs of policies and guidelines for motivation of employees, effective communication, and safety concerns
  • Discuss the importance of the socialisation process in developing a dedicated, loyal, productive employee; and develop a process to bring it about including the essentials of employee training and management development

Business and Management Skills (15 credits)

  • Identify the key business and management skills areas which will be needed during their course and potentially in the world of employment
  • Understand the organisation’s purpose, stakeholders, structure and functional areas
  • Understand the specific responsibilities of middle managers in enabling an organisation to achieve its goals
  • Understand how communication and interpersonal relationships affect managerial performance in the workplace
  • Be able to solve workplace problems by making effective decisions
  • Understand the role of numerical data in business, develop the tools to analyse and then effectively communicate / present numerical and verbal information
  • Gather and evaluate complex information from diverse sources through diverse media
  • Review research activity and identify areas for improvement
  • Evaluate personal development opportunities to improve own managerial performance

Work Based Learning 1(30 credits)

  • Apply appropriate theory to a practical work based project
  • Identify appropriate solutions and evaluate the project in relation to the business environment and the implications of that environment for management and working practices
  • Undertake reflective learning by reviewing the personal and organisational responses
  • Identify personal/professional development needs in relation to future goals

Business Level 5 Modules

Leadership and Managing Teams (15 credits)

  • Analyse and assess the influence of leadership on an organisation's culture
  • Critically evaluate the major attributes of effective leadership
  • Apply understanding of various approaches to decision making as they relate to effective leadership
  • Analyse and distinguish among leadership approaches to managing change
  • Critically evaluate the impact of change on people, processes, products and organisational culture

Leadership and Action Learning (30 credits)

  • Distinguish between management theories and their influence on management and leadership practice
  • Identify the prevailing leadership styles in an organisation and assess their effect on behaviour and performance in the organisation
  • Assess the levels of motivation and commitment to the organisation’s values and goals amongst the people you lead
  • Assess own ability to use different leadership styles, to communicate the organisation’s values and goals and motivate others and build commitment to the organisation’s values and goals
  • Undertake planned actions to improve own leadership performance and make judgements about their effectiveness
  • Engage actively in action learning to develop own leadership performance
  • Evaluate action learning as a leadership development technique and its role in own leadership development
  • Identify own beliefs, attitudes and values and reflect on how these shape own behaviours and perceptions of others’ behaviour
  • Reflect on, critically analyse and make insightful judgements about improvement in own leadership performance

Business Planning (15 credits)

  • Apply understanding of the inter-relationships of key business functions
  • Critically evaluate the value to the firm of proposed investment projects
  • Analyse and assess risk and its impact on a business and on managers
  • Identify and critique the various methods of funding new projects and investments
  • Apply understanding of the impact of ICT skills in formulating a business plan

Financial Decision Making (15 credits)

  • Apply understanding of quantitative decision making techniques
  • Critically evaluate the most appropriate forecasting model for specific business needs
  • Analyse and calculate problems using mathematical and statistically based tools and techniques
  • Critically assess decision making management software programs, websites, and associations for their usefulness as information resources

Operations Management (15 credits)

  • Analyse and critique operations decisions using appropriate information and resources
  • Critically compare operations management systems of world class producers
  • Understand and evaluate requirements for effective inventory management
  • Apply understanding of a control process management system
  • Assess the advantages and disadvantages of process specialisation and automation

Project Management (15 credits)

  • Identify the context, linkages and content of project management
  • Develop the unique criteria that an individual project would be measured against known benchmarks
  • Apply understanding of project management concepts and software to define, implement, and modify projects
  • Apply understanding of the concepts of project closure to project management

Marketing and Sales Management (15 credits)

  • Classify and analyse different sales functions
  • Critically evaluate recruitment, selection, and retention plans for sales people
  • Design sales plans
  • Create sales presentations
  • Analyse and assess sales management and leadership strategies
  • Apply understanding of good practices in sales force management

Work Based Learning 2 (30 Credits)

  • Apply understanding of an issue within the work context which is worthy of investigation and has potential as a vehicle for personal learning and organisational change
  • Critically present a response to the issue that has been selected from a range of alternatives and is underpinned by knowledge of appropriate theoretical models, professional practice, systematic data collection, analysis and evaluation
  • Implement the proposed response as appropriate to the work context and critically evaluate its impact on the organisation
  • Apply the skills of observation, investigation, reflection, and problem solving in a financial services sector working environment
  • Manage independently the processes involved in the analysis, development and implementation of their response and communicate the results of the project fluently using appropriate media and methods to a variety of different audiences
  • Reflect critically on personal competencies and personal learning

Market Research and Innovation (15 credits)

  • Critically evaluate data collection methods
  • Analyse and assess appropriate research designs for specific research projects
  • Formulate a research proposal
  • Apply understanding of appropriate research technologies
  • Critically examine ethical issues in business research

Marketing Planning (15 credits)

  • Apply understanding of the role of the marketing plan in the overall business strategy and the interaction with other business functions
  • Analyse and assess the methods of market segmentation, targeting and positioning
  • Develop a strategic marketing plan across a range of different product and service categories
  • Apply ICT skills to present a marketing plan to a range of users
  • Create a marketing plan that can be reviewed, developed and monitored as a campaign is launched

Consumer Behaviour (15 credits)

  • Critically explain the impact of consumer behaviour on marketing strategy
  • Apply understanding of the consumer research process
  • Apply understanding of the importance of market segmentation
  • Critically analyse the importance of consumer learning theory
  • Analyse and assess cross-cultural consumer analysis techniques
  • Critically evaluate the consumer decision-making process

Marketing Communications (15 credits)

  • Apply understanding of the marketing communications industry
  • Analyse and assess the impact of economic factors on media industry decisions
  • Critically evaluate the regulatory environment as it impacts on marketing communication
  • Analyse the roles of media creators, consumers, advertisers and other professions using a media market model
  • Apply understanding of techniques to measure the contribution to a business of a successful marketing campaign

Internet Marketing (15 credits)

  • Apply understanding of the role of web marketing in the overall business strategy and the interaction with other business functions
  • Analyse and assess research techniques and analytics software to support the web marketing plan
  • Create a web marketing plan based on a range of models
  • Critically evaluate the practical logistics of establishing and maintaining an internet marketing site, including legal, regulatory and security issues

Business level 6 modules

Business Strategy (15 credits)

  • Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of the nature of strategy and its importance in an organisational context.
  • Express a holistic comprehension of the core principles of strategic management.
  • Display critical analytical and problem-solving techniques in appropriate business contexts, with the capacity to present conclusions professionally.
  • Demonstrate initiative and creativity in the selection of suitable competitive strategies for organisational success.
  • Display firm understanding of the importance of the strategic intent, purpose and culture in determining organisational effectiveness.

Global Business Environment (15 credits)

  • Critically evaluate the motives for, and barriers to, internationalisation.
  • Demonstrate understanding of current levels and trends of global trade and business.
  • Critically evaluate modes of entry available to business in the international process.
  • Comprehend the role of key supranational organisations.
  • Display a critical appreciation of organisational functions in an international context.

Strategic Human Resource Management (15 credits)

  • Critically evaluate the major theoretical approaches to the development of corporate and business strategy
  • Demonstrate the link between business strategy and human resource management
  • Explain the concept of strategic HRM and evaluate its potential contribution to organisational objectives.

International Marketing Strategy (15 credits)

  • Understand and appreciate the underlying theories of international marketing
  • Critically analyse international marketing opportunities
  • Demonstrate an ability to formulate and assess international marketing strategies
  • Demonstrate an understanding of both the process and the complexities associated with the implementation of international marketing programmes
  • Analyse the international marketing implications of the activities of organisations such as the European Union, other regional trading blocs (i.e. NAFTA, ASEAN) and WTO

Business and Management Project (30 credits)

  • Demonstrate an appreciation of the nature of research, and of alternative approaches to it
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the basic principles for ethical research
  • Critically evaluate and use the findings of existing research
  • Investigate, consider and analyse data sources
  • Study independently using their own initiative and develop a structured approach to manage the outcome of a project
  • Apply effectively their knowledge, skills and understanding to a variety of familiar and unfamiliar situations
  • Display a depth of understanding of the subject researched and communicate ideas in a clear and coherent way
  • Demonstrate their ability to analyse, evaluate and synthesise ideas and information
  • Reflect on the practice of self directed working and learning

Business Law (15 credits)

  • Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the basic principles of the English Legal system, relevant legal institutions and four principal areas of law relevant to the operation of a business
  • Research effectively a number of cases and other sources of information to help interpret the law
  • Critically evaluate the impact of the changing legal environment on the business/organization situation
  • Identify and investigate 'legal problems' for businesses and suggest solutions to the same
  • Improve self learning skills by being able to effectively analyse a law report and piece of legislation and to tackle comprehensive case studies and problem scenarios

Business Finance (15 credits)

  • Critically analyse the role of finance in modern business
  • Understand the conceptual framework of finance
  • Evaluate alternative funding policies and instruments available to firms
  • Understand the range and application of techniques used for capital investment appraisal
  • Appreciate methods of valuation and their application to corporate restructuring